Unfortunately, many clients come to our office after a foreclosure auction arising out of a Final Judgment of Foreclosure wishing to save their home. These clients cannot file a bankruptcy since the sale already took place. However, not all is lost for the client. Under Fla. Stat. §45.031, a client has 10 days after the auction to file an Objection to Sale to stop Certificate of Title from transferring to either a third-party purchaser or the original lender. In Florida, it used to be where a borrower would have to show an inadequacy of bid price at auction. This is not the case any longer. The Florida Supreme Court has issued the following test to vacate a judicial sale: “On the question of gross inadequacy of consideration, surprise, accident, or mistake imposed on complainant, and irregularity in the conduct of the sale, this court is committed to the doctrine that a judicial sale may on a proper showing made, be vacated and set aside on any or all of these grounds.” Arsali v. Chase Home Fin. LLC, 121 So. 3d 511, 515 (Fla. 2013) (citing Moran-Alleen Co. v. Brown, 98 Fla. 203, 123 So. 561 (1929). Emphasis Added. The Florida Supreme Court in Arsali resolved the conflict of several lower Florida Circuit Courts and held that inadequacy of bid price is not required to be alleged in an action to set aside a judicial foreclosure sale. Ibid at 514. The Court reasoned that trial courts’ use of their equity powers in resolving disputes pertaining to judicial foreclosure sale set aside actions are essential and therefore the mere allegation of any single factor or any specific combination of factors is insufficient for litigations to prevail in an action seeing to set aside a foreclosure sale. Ibid at 518. Instead, the Court held that litigants can allege one or more adequate equitable factors and make a proper showing to the trial court that they exist in order to successfully obtain an order that sets aside a judicial foreclosure sale. Ibid, (citing, Ohio Realty Inv. Corp. v. S. Bank of W. Palm Beach, 300 So.2d 679 (Fla.1974)).
If you or anyone you know is facing the possibility of getting forced out of your home due to a foreclosure auction, please contact our office immediately. Our Fort Lauderdale foreclosure attorneys very experienced, knowledgeable, and aggressive attorneys and can quickly analyze your case to possibly file an Objection to Sale with the hope of vacating the auction to save your home.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Loan Lawyers is made up of experienced consumer rights attorneys who use every available resource to develop comprehensive debt solution strategies. Our goal is to take on those burdens, resolve those problems, and allow our clients to sleep soundly knowing they are on the path to a better future.
